Copenhagen Tasting Group welcomes Tom in DC

Copenhagen
Tasted Sunday, September 5, 2004 - Friday, September 10, 2004 by Joe Belmaati with 2,523 views

Introduction

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On Friday night the Copenhagen Tasting Group welcomed Tom Wheltle from Washington DC. It was Lars who put on a blind tasting, and there were plenty of interesting wines. The tasting was conducted at Lars's house and we were treated to his excellent cooking. In all it was 9 of us. It was a pleasure to have Tom with us. The first few wines were tasted double blind, the old Pauillacs and Sauternes were not tasted blind, and the young Sauternes were tasted single blind.

Flight 1 - Flight 1 (2 Notes)

  • 1988 Jacques Selosse Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Millésimé 91 Points

    France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

    (9/10/2004)

    Medium to dark yellow. Scents of bread, wheat toast, crushed nuts and almonds, and gummy bears. Medium bodied with ample structure and definition. Good weight and intensity on the palate. Initially the wine had a somewhat off putting bear flavour, but that disappeared after a little while. A thoroughly delicious and sumptuous Champagne which should be drunk now.

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  • 1988 Pol Roger Champagne Vintage Brut 87 Points

    France, Champagne

    (9/10/2004)

    Medium yellow colour. The bouquet revealed notes of rust, wet iron, and vitamin pills. Delightfully sweet and gentle in its soft sweep. Seems to lack a bit of width, but it is a Champagne made in a quite commercial and forward style which I am sure would be favoured by many people. I enjoyed the wine quite a lot, even though it could have been a bit more complex and long on the aftertaste.

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Flight 2 - Test Flight (1 Note)

This flight wasn't really part of the program, but I am just adding it for testing purposes.

  • 1998 Château Figeac 88 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    (6/9/2004)

    Dark red colour with a slight hint of purple at the core. Nice, elegant notes of blue berry jam, and a distinct whiff of toasty vanilla spice. Quite light-bodied in the mouth, and somewhat simple and one-dimensional. Especially for a 1998 Right Banker. The wine seems to be just a touch too light - just lacking slightly in concentration. The structure is not to die for, but seems adequate - but who's looking for "adequate"?? The mouth feel is soft and pleasant, although this is no seductress. Slightly bitter on the medium finish.
    88 points

    Tasted September 27th 2003

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Flight 3 - Flight 2 (2 Notes)

  • 1995 Château Mouton Rothschild 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    Dark red. Wonderful scents of coffee, cassis, tobacco, and blue berries. Sweet, well defined and fleshy in texture. Good, solid core of fruit with excellent purity and density. However, this wine is very closed and hard right now. It seems to be in an awkward stage and I would definitely not open one soon. Precise in structure with good clarity, and an aftertaste on notes of cran berries.

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  • 1996 Château Mouton Rothschild 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    Dark red. Scents of ink, dried leaves, and tobacco. Dense, complex and well structured with marvellous weight and intensity on the palate. Superb grip and poise with flavours of prunes, and dark chocolate. There's a touch of oak, but nothing that gets in the way. My third time trying this wine, and while it was probably slightly better last year, it is really a nice drink. Of course, this wine is by no means ready, and it is still quite tannic, so I would suggest tucking this away for 10+ years. An unmistakeably great wine, though.

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Flight 4 - Flight 3 (2 Notes)

  • 1990 Château Latour Grand Vin 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    Dark red with browning and clearing at the rim. Notes of mustard, red berries, and forest floor. Fleshy round and delicious in the mouth with a nice soft feel. There was an interesting sulfur-like flavour component to contend with, but this was by no means off putting to me. I could also single out a tomato-like flavour ingredient. Good intensity and complexity and excellent balance for everything except the final few seconds of the after taste that seemed to turn a touch sour. This was not really a problem, but just a little something to point out for those that like to get really particular.

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  • 1990 Château Lafite Rothschild 91 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    Dark red colour with some clearing at the rim, and a little bit of sediment. Notes of ink with an alcoholic nature to the bouquet. In the mouth the wine was juicy and delicious with very good and precise acid and balance. The complexity left a little bit to be desired for a really high score, but in all this was a very nice drink, and I would say that now is as good a time as any to open a bottle. In my opinion this wine is better than it's reputation, although it is not blockbuster-Lafite.

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Flight 5 - Flight 4 (3 Notes)

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  • 1934 Château Lafite Rothschild

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    Brown in the glass. Scents of plumb and slightly rotten banana peel. Very simple and somewhat bitter in taste. This was an interesting wine to taste, albeit far from a hedonistic pleasure. This wine has seen better days. Maybe some people would have better luck and I do believe that this bottle had a low shoulder fill. Initially I gave a score of 75 points, but come to think of it a 'no-rating' is probably more appropriate.

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  • 1934 Château Latour Grand Vin 85 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    Mid shoulder fill. Orange colour. Scents of wet soil. Fleshy and delicious with caramel and chocolate flavours. Fresh, very much alive and still retaining good structure. Delicious.

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  • 1937 Château Latour Grand Vin 89 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    (9/10/2004)

    High shoulder fill. Scents of acetone. This blew over after some minutes, and the bouquet turned more to notes of prunes and figs. Sweet and round in the mouth - perfectly mature and by no means over the hill. Vinous and delicious with strong flavours of brown sugar and rich, dark chocolate. Nice, balanced aftertaste.

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Flight 6 - Flight 5 (1 Note)

A Bonus Flight (double blind)

  • 1937 Domaine Calvet Charmes-Chambertin 84 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru

    (9/10/2004)

    Brown in the glass. Scents of nuts and sugar. Sweet and sugary on the palate. Very hard to peg as a Burgundy. There was a distinct orange peel taste to this wine, and it was quite juicy and elegant. Still holding its flag high. An interesting drink.

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Flight 7 - Flight 6 (2 Notes)

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  • 2001 Château Rieussec 96 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    (9/10/2004)

    Pale straw yellow. Scents of wax and tea. Incredibly intense on the palate with marvellous density and concentration. Superb balance - not overly sweet - with excellent structure and definition, coupled with elegance and style. The sweetness was very detailed and lush, and the aftertaste retained all the freshness, and sweetness in a slow fade. I wish I had cases of this.

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  • 2001 Château Climens 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

    (9/10/2004)

    Light yellow in colour. Notes of honey and crème brulée coming out of the glass. Sweet and packed with botrytis. Oily, fat and with a great vanilla spiced taste, this wine has all the makings of a classic Sauternes. Well structured - although at this stage the wine is slightly plump - with a nice focused beam of acid. Long, balanced aftertaste on notes of honey, apricot, and rhubarb.

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Flight 8 - Flight 7 (2 Notes)

  • 1917 Château Coutet Barsac 86 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

    (9/10/2004)

    Brown. Scents of brown sugar and molasses. Sirupy in the mouth intermixed with a flavour component of walnuts. This wine is very much alive and a pleasure to drink. Well stored examples should show well. Medium dense with good balance and no sign of fading in the glass. Balanced aftertaste. Nice.

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  • 1934 Château Coutet Barsac

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

    (9/10/2004)

    Brown. Smells like detergent. Dead.

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Flight 9 - Flight 8 (1 Note)

Another Bonus Flight (double blind)

  • 1990 Château Pape Clément

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    (9/10/2004)

    Dark red in the glass with slight clearing at the rim. Completely closed on the nose. The wine had a distinct taste of buttered milk. Really weird. Medium weight and density. I found this wine hard to take notes on, and in all honesty this was probably an off bottle.

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Closing

So there it is. Another great night with the gang. A great many thanks to Lars who was a gracious host. Thanks for all the great food. As usual there was plenty of laughter and bad jokes, and we really enjoyed Tom's company. I just hope he wasn't scared away by the group conduct, or should we say group dynamic.

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